Reports linking former US presidential candidate John Edwards to a New York prostitution service have been cast into doubt by the lawyer of the British woman accused of masterminding the high-end brothel.

Gary Greenwald, defence counsel for Scottish-born Anna Gristina, said he had "never heard" the Edwards' name being used in connection to the case.

It follows claims that a call girl working for the alleged brothel boss told investigators she was paid to have sex with Edwards, who is currently facing unrelated charges involving the alleged use of campaign funds to cover up an affair.

The former North Carolina senator is first name to be linked in reports to the latest vice scandal to hit Manhattan.

According to news website DNAinfo, Edwards is alleged to have paid for sex with the unnamed woman in 2007, while he was in New York raising funds for his presidential campaign.

The alleged trysts took place in the Upper East Side apartment where prosecutors say Gristina arranged for rich and powerful clients to meet with high-end call girls, it is claimed.

DNAinfo reports that the New York district attorney's office was informed of the alleged link with Edwards in 2008 as part of an investigation into Gristina's activities.

But investigators failed to notify federal authorities and brought no charges against the then-seeker of the Democratic presidential nomination.

Edwards' bid for the White House ticket ended in January 2008. By that time the National Enquirer had already begun reporting an extra-marital affair.

Edwards later owned up to the infidelity, but denied being the father of a child born to the woman. Last year, he was indicted by grand jury over charges relating to alleged misuse of funds to cover up the affair.

Speaking on Thursday, Greenwald seemed to be taken aback by claims of a link between his client and Edwards.

"I do not know what you are talking about. It is the first time I have heard it," he said, on being asked about the veracity of the allegations.

He added: "I have never heard John Edwards mentioned until you mentioned it."

Other sources contacted by the Guardian also expressed surprise over the claims. One person familiar with the case suggested that the allegation was "way, way out of the leftfield".

Gristina, originally from Kirkliston, near Edinburgh, was arrested last month and charged with one count of promoting prostitution.

It is alleged that the mother-of-four masterminded a 15-year prostitution service in Manhattan, amassing a $10-15m personal fortune in the process. Prosecutors have argued that much of the money has been squirrelled away.

During a court hearing to establish bail, it was argued that access to this cash, alongside a network of wealthy and influential friends, made Gristina a "substantial" flight risk.

But defence lawyers have said the defendant does not have "two nickels to rub together".

As such, Gristina cannot afford to pay the $1m cash or $2m insurance bond needed if she is to be released from New York's notorious Rikers Island jail, they claim.

Her former pro bono lawyer Peter Gleason has offered to put up his $2.5m apartment in Manhattan's fashionable Tribeca district as collateral against the bail sum.

Greenwald said on Thursday that the defence team was still in the process of putting together the paperwork in relation to the property bond. A surety hearing will follow, in which the court will decide if she will be released on bond ahead of a possible trial.